2014 GMC Sierra SLT with two screen doors picked up on sale at Home Depot for $29 each.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

2014 GMC Sierra SLT.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

2014 GMC Sierra SLT.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

2014 GMC Sierra SLT.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

2014 GMC Sierra SLT 1500.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

2014 GMC Sierra SLT tie-down anchor.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

2014 GMC Sierra SLT LED bed light.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

2014 GMC Sierra SLT 1500. LED bed lights give good illumination.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

By Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

Originally published: August 26, 2013

SMALL

MEDIUM

LARGE

The more I drive GMC’s all new Sierra, the more the truck becomes an integral part of my life. This was not supposed to happen: I’m a sports-car guy that happens to like trucks. I’m not supposed to love trucks. But trucks, like good dogs, have a way of worming their way into your heart — mostly because they’re always there when you need them.

No where is that more obvious than when it comes to hauling, and for some reason — I guess it’s because I can — I’m carrying stuff all over the place, whether it’s lumber to the cottage, firewood from the cottage, or mountain bikes to the nearest cross-country trail. Owning a truck, as millions knew long before me, makes life so much easier.

Now roughly seven weeks into our long-term test of a 2014 Sierra SLT, I’ve arrived at an uneasy juncture: Where once I never saw a need to own a full-size truck, I’m now worried about not driving a truck once this test concludes in mid September. How am I going to live without a truck, particularly one I’ve grown so fond of?

The Sierra genuinely has made living with a truck easy, in part because it’s not as big as a Ford F-150, Ram 1500 or Toyota Tundra. And aside from the comfortable, quiet cabin, plus the excellent 4WD and AWD system, as well as decent fuel economy, the cargo bed is proving immensely valuable, underlining why so many people in this country buy trucks.

And because Crew Cabs are growing in popularity with the rise in truck sales, the Sierra can now be optioned with an available 6’-6” box for the first time, in addition to the standard 5’-8” box. The standard 8’-box and other configurations are, of course, available on two door Sierras. But I’m finding this 5’-8” box ideal, especially when slipping into underground parking garages where curbs and walls can be extraordinarily close. The short box is also easy to park (especially so with a back-up camera,) and it can easily carry eight-foot lumber with the tailgate open. It will also carry an ATV with the tailgate open. With little effort, the tailgate can also be removed if need be.

The maximum payload of our Crewcab and shortbox is 1,957 pounds. The width at the bed floor is 64.6 inches, and 51” between the wheel wells. The bed height is 21 inches. The bed rail has built-in pockets to grab when climbing into the back, but no extendable step like Ford offers. The cargo bed has a centre high-mount light, plus two useful LED lights as an inexpensive option, hidden under the lip of the bed where they won’t distort night vision. We have four upper tie down loops and four others in the bed, though the tie downs are fixed, not adjustable like those on the Toyota Tundra. And they could be bigger.

GM also makes available, as options, hard and soft covers, as well as spray in liners or plastic, drop in liners. I would prefer the spray liner and hard cover — the latching on the soft cover is cumbersome. GM might even create a better step-in system, other than the corner steps.

Still, at the end of the day, the Sierra’s cargo bed has become my own man purse, something I can’t seem to go anywhere without.